Friday, August 17, 2018

Written by Jon Williams

In an age of reboots and revivals, it takes a piece of
seriously big news to command the attention of the pop culture landscape.
That’s exactly what happened recently when first rumours started to swirl and
then actual confirmation happened that Patrick Stewart would return to the role
of Jean-Luc Picard in a new Star Trek
series being developed. The series will explore the further adventures and
later life of the beloved man who once commanded the bridge of the iconic
starship Enterprise.

Although he had already been acting for many years, many
people, especially in the United States, had their first exposure to Stewart
when Star Trek: The Next Generation
debuted in 1987. That show breathed new life into a popular franchise that,
nevertheless, had been off television for nearly twenty years. It worked; the
show ran for seven
seasons and then, like the original series before it, spawned several big-screen
adventures, with Stewart continuing to lead the cast from the show. All in
all, he ended up portraying Jean-Luc Picard for fifteen years. It’s been
sixteen years since the last time, in the 2002 movie Star Trek: Nemesis, and fans are
eager to see what has become of the intrepid captain in the meantime—just as Stewart
is himself, calling the opportunity to return “…an unexpected but
delightful surprise.” Although he was initially skeptical of performing in a
sci-fi television show, he eventually came to appreciate the reach the show had
and the impact it had on fans’ lives.

Seeming to confirm his initial skepticism, though, for a
time the popularity of Star Trek: The Next Generation hindered him from landing
other roles, as filmmakers felt that having “Captain Picard” show up in their
project would distract the audience. Stewart finally got around this by jumping
into a similar part in another sci-fi franchise. In 2000’s X-Men,
he portrayed for the first time Professor Charles Xavier, who runs a school to
teach youngsters with freakish abilities (called “mutants”) how to control and
use them responsibly. As with Star Trek,
the role lingered, with Stewart playing Professor Xavier in a total of seven
movies, most recently (and for the final time) in 2017’s critically acclaimed Logan.

Patrick Stewart is an actor whose performances are always
incredible, and the news that he’s returning to Star Trek is sure to put his work in the spotlight as never before.
Make sure you have The Next Generation
shows and movies on your shelves for patrons to discover or relive, and
SmartBrowse his name on our website to see a full list of what we have to offer
from his impressive career. And for more Star
Trek, be sure to pre-order the first season of Discovery,
available in November, before the second season premieres in early 2019.